Name: Jonathan Samuel
Year: Senior
Major: Health Science
Hometown: Queens, NY
Interests: Playing video games and music
What was the toughest part about transferring?
Jonathan: “The school that I went to before this was a pretty small school. The biggest class had maybe 80 people in it. And then coming here, the regular classes have like 100 people in it, so the classroom size probably, and just not knowing anyone.”
What is your best Stony Brook memory?
Jonathan: “Overall, I’d say my best Stony Brook memory would be last year in general. Even though it was a tough adjustment it was also a really great year for me. I met a lot of great people here, especially on the track team. Everyone was just so nice, it was like family.”
What do you think is the most challenging aspect of being a student athlete?
Jonathan: “Having to get up early. Having to go out of your way to make sure that your body is in the best shape that it can be in and definitely having to take care of the little things in order to actually do well ‘cause you can’t bullsh*t anymore or you won’t really get far.”
What are some peices of advice you’d give your freshman self?
Jonathan: “1. Watch out for the girls. 2. You should make good habits early. Start getting good habits down early, ‘cause they just get harder to implement as time goes on, so if you can be focused early, the rest will come naturally. 3. Make sure you have fun, ‘cause it’s over like that. You don’t want to wait till senior year to start doing stuff and going out ‘cause you’ll be like ‘I’ve been missing this my whole entire life!’ 4. Get a job, because you will go broke quickly.”
How do you feel about graduating?
Jonathan: “It’s weird, I don’t even feel like I’m graduating to be honest. Since I’ve only been here for two years I feel like I’m coming back next year even though I know I’m not. I guess it just hasn’t hit me yet. All good things must come to an end.”
Photos courtesy of Frank L. Fumelli and Jonathan Samuel